Topic 9 Nuclear Decay

9A Radioactivity
Learning objectives

 Describe what is meant by background radiation

and explain how to take appropriate account of
it.
 Explain the relationship between the structure of
alpha, beta and gamma radiations, and their
penetrating and ionising abilities.
 Write and interpret nuclear equations.
Background radiation
 Natural background radiation is all around us.
 Background radiation varies from place to place and
over time, depending on the amount of naturally-
occurring radioactive elements in soil, water and air.
 Weather conditions also affect radiation levels, as
snow cover may shield these elements, and
radioactive particulates can wash out of the air during
rainstorms.
 Cosmic radiation from the sun, our galaxy, and
beyond is constantly around us and contributes to
natural background radiation.
 Altitude and latitude can also influence the level of
background radiation at any one site.
 Henry Becquerel
 Henry Becquerel discovered radioactivity by
accident. A Uranium compound was placed
in a drawer containing photographic plates,
wrapped in a black paper. When the plates
were examined later, it was found that they
were exposed! This exposure gave rise to
the concept of Radioactive decay.
 Radiation levels are often reported in counts
per second, and this unit is called becquerel
(Bq).
Sources of background radiation
Non-Ionizing and Ionizing Radiation

 There are two kinds of radiation: non-ionizing radiation and ionizing radiation.
 Non-ionizing radiation has enough energy to move atoms in a molecule around or
cause them to vibrate, but not enough to remove electrons from atoms. Examples of
this kind of radiation are radio waves, visible light and microwaves.
 Ionizing radiation has so much energy it can knock electrons out of atoms, a process
known as ionization. Ionizing radiation can affect the atoms in living things, so it poses
a health risk by damaging tissue and DNA in genes. Ionizing radiation comes from x-
ray machines, cosmic particles from outer space and radioactive elements. Radioactive
elements emit ionizing radiation as their atoms undergo radioactive decay.
Types of Nuclear Radiation
 Radioactive decay is the emission of energy in the form of ionizing radiation.
 The ionizing radiation that is emitted can include 
 alpha particles, 
 beta particles and/or 
 gamma rays.
 Radioactive decay occurs in unstable atoms called radionuclides.
Alpha decay
Beta decay
 beta decay, any of three processes of radioactive 
disintegration by which some unstable atomic nuclei
spontaneously dissipate excess energy and undergo a
change of one unit of positive charge without any change
in mass number.
 The three processes are electron emission, positron
 (positive electron) emission, and electron capture.
 Beta decay was named (1899) by Ernest Rutherford when
he observed that radioactivity was not a simple
phenomenon. He called the less penetrating rays alpha
and the more penetrating rays beta.
 Most beta particles are ejected at speeds approaching that
of light.
Quark level
Beta decay equation
 Gamma decay
 gamma decay, type of radioactivity in which some unstable atomic nuclei dissipate
 excess energy by a spontaneous electromagnetic process.
 In the most common form of gamma decay, known as gamma emission, gamma rays
 (photons, or packets of electromagnetic energy, of extremely short wavelength) are
radiated.
 Gamma decay also includes two other electromagnetic processes, internal conversion
 and internal pair production. In internal conversion, excess energy in a nucleus is
directly transferred to one of its own orbiting electrons, thereby ejecting the electron
from the atom.
 In internal pair production, excess energy is directly converted within the 
electromagnetic field of a nucleus into an electron and a positron (positively charged
electron) that are emitted together. Internal conversion always accompanies the
predominant process of gamma emission to some extent. Some nuclei of a sample
decay by gamma emission, others by internal conversion. 
 Internal pair production requires that the excess energy of the unstable nucleus be at
least equivalent to the combined masses of an electron and a positron (that is, in
excess of 1,020,000 electron volts).
Gamma decay

 The unstable nuclei that undergo gamma decay are the products either of other
types of radioactivity (alpha and beta decay) or of some other nuclear process,
such as neutron capture in a nuclear reactor.
 These product nuclei have more than their normal energy, which they lose in 
discrete amounts as gamma-ray photons until they reach their lowest 
energy level, or ground state.
 Typical half-lives for gamma emission are immeasurably short (from about 10 -
9
 to 10−14 second).
 When the half-lives for gamma emission are measurable, the nucleus in the
higher energy state before radiating a photon and the one in the lower energy
state are called nuclear isomers.
Dangers from nuclear radiation
Homework questions